RobertI

That’s really helpful, good to hear about your personal experiences. The general message seems to be consider taking less rather than more. That’s also a good point about looking through other scopes, I do want to try and get some views through other scopes, especially some of this big dobs. I’m conscious of the fact that there’s a high probability I won’t get ANY clear skies, so I guess I shouldn’t go mad with equipment. 🙂

Were the electrical problems caused by the supply at Kelling or by the amount of dew?

Thanks Paz, some good ideas there. Yes I had considered dew and have dew bands, etc (even a little hairdryer!) but a ‘spare’ scope is an interesting one. If it was just me I wouldn't bother with the CG5 and electronics, but thinking that my friend might be more interested if there was some fun tech to use…

Wonderful image. Might get more attention if it was put in the imaging forum?

Not sure best place to post this, but here goes. I’m off to Kelling for four nights in October and taking a friend with me who is a compete beginner. Trying to work out the best kit to take. Now I think my site is partially obscured by trees so I may need to move around to get a full view of everything. But my thinking was to take the following (purely visual): My C8 on a CG5 EQ mount - this can be controlled by SakySafari on a tablet and I was thinking my novice friend might have fun using this, I could create a list of interesting objects for for him to explore under my supervision. My Skytee 2 altaz manual mount with a 102ED F7 frac on one side and ZS66 on the other - this would be used mainly by me for tracking down more challenging stuff and bino-viewing Jupiter and Saturn. 10x50 binoculars! I also have a Heritage 130P which sits nicely on a SkyProdigy or manual altaz mount like my AZ4, but not sure this adds anything to the kit I am taking. And I also have a 150 F8 Newtonian which has produced great results but is a bit bulky to transport. The best objects I think are going to be the open clusters in and around Cassiopeia, emission nebulae in and around Cygnus, scattered globulars and of course Jupiter and Saturn. What do people think? Have I missed something obvious in the setup or some other considerations?

I’ve just seen that there’s already an H-Beta SkySafari list in the Member’s observing list thread! Oh well….

I’m visual only, I’m taking a couple of scopes and tripods as I am taking a friend who is a novice, so he can have a go, and I’ll be happy to share views with anyone else. I will also be looking to get a look through some large dobs if possible. I’m kinda thinking it would be good to have a list of visual observers who are happy to let other SGL’ers have a squint. I’m on pitches 431 and 442 in red field, very happy to chat (I don’t get out much!).

If folk are interested I have created a Sky Safari observing list with Don’s Hb targets (except three I couldn’t find), hope it’s of use…. H Beta targets.skylist

Thanks for the thoughts Louis and Don. My filters live in a manual filter wheel at the moment, so I can flick between them quickly, although obviously I can’t stack!

It’s an Astronomik Hb, same as my other filters. Yes I do have 40mm Plossl which came with my C8 purchased 25 years ago - it’s still rolling around my eyepiece tray somewhere, never really used, so it will be good to find a use for it! I shall definitely give is a go, good suggestion, although I hope my pupil can expand large enough (5.7mm so should be ok I think). As for the Heritage 130, another good idea, I was thinking about that, it has worked really well with the OIII in the past so will give a go. 👍

I have never lost the wonder of looking at certain celestial objects. When you gaze into the heart of the fiery Orion Nebula and see the crucible of the Trapezium where stars are being born, and tendrils of illuminated gas spanning light years, it does give me a sense of our place in the Universe and a perspective on the mundane problems of life. Unfortunately these feelings rarely permeate my day to day stresses and anxieties, but I do feel a duty to spread the message and enlighten others when I can.

Interesting John, I have switched between OIII, UHC and no filter on M42 and it is equally interesting to see the difference - switching in the Hb should be really interesting. The filter wheel is great for this, makes switching easy and the difference views immediately obvious.

Love both of these, can you say more about the first scope?

Interesting additional comments on these object Steve. I can only comment on the California neb so far using my 102ED and a 32mm Plossl giving an exit pupil of 4.6mm - the nebula was clearly visible but dim with the Hb, but when I tried with an OIII or UHC or no filter I couldn’t see it at all. I’ll definitely try some of these others as I am curious now, but I suspect I started with the best nebula of the bunch.

I’ll let you know how I get on John! I’m not really expecting to have much luck with the Horsehead tbh.

Thanks Don, great list I’ll give some of these a go.

@josefk I would second Stu’s comment, I would even say that an OIII can have an almost magical effect on the Veil and other objects as described in this observing report. Sorry to divert thread.

Just an update to this rather old thread for posterity. I ended up purchasing a Hb filter but only recently got round to trying it out. Using my 4” apo and a 32mm plossl, I had a go at the California nebula in Perseus. I was not really expecting to see anything but was really surprised to pick it up straight away - it was large and dim, but immediate and unmistakeable. I also tried with a UHC, OIII and no filter, but the nebula was completely invisible. Back to the Hb and it popped into view again. It was worth the purchase just to see the California neb to be honest, as I’d never managed it before. Looking forward to trying the elusive Horsehead over the winter, possibly with the C8. There appear to be a few other more obscure “Hb friendly” nebulae which I’ll also have a go at some time.

Probably my widest field setup is my 60mm F3.75 finder with my 24mm 68 degree eyepiece, giving a whopping 7.5 degrees field of view! The aberrations are quite unpleasant though. I can use my 38mm Panaview with my 66mm refractor, giving a 7 degrees FOV, there is theoretical vignetting but not actually noticeable. But my everyday wide field setup is my 102ED and 38mm Panaview giving 3.9 degrees. Stupidly I sold my Megrez 72mm which was a brilliant wide field scope with a 2” focuser. I know this is a “show me” thread, so better show a picture I guess…..

Although I’ve been observing for a long time, the moon has just never excited me, and as a result I still know shockingly little about the lunar surface. When I discovered the bino-viewing experience, and the wow factor they give on moon and planets, I was hopeful that I would do more lunar, but it’s not yet happened. Recently I did enjoy discovering lunar domes and I’m sure there are plenty of other types of feature I need to discover, but I’ve not been tempted out again. Perhaps I just need a good lunar observing book to inspire me……..

Sorry to hear about your personal losses and injuries. Sounds like you’ve been having a tough time, hope things are improving for you. The garden and observing great.

I did not know that about the discovery of Pickering’s wisp, interesting info, thank you. If you do ever end up at Kelling, let me know. 🙂

Thanks Peter, I would definitely invest in an OIII filter, it’s worth it for the Veil alone, but works like magic on so many other nebulae, including those tiny planetaries. On the Veil, the OIII will show more structure and detail than a UHC. When I got my 2” Panaview, it was for the express purpose of fitting the whole veil complex into the entire FOV, so I also bought a 2” UHC, kinda wish I’d gone for a 2” OIII instead! I can see the whole complex with this setup - it’s fascinating but I wouldn’t say it’s worth the hassle of digging out the massive 2” eyepiece and rebalancing the scope! But I might need to experiment more with longer focal length 2” eyepieces and the larger exist pupils they provide.

Totally agree John. I enjoy using filters so much I have a manual filter wheel semi-permanently attached between the diagonal and the eyepiece. It has an OIII, UHC, UHCE and now Hb attached. It’s fun to swap between them, although the UHCE rarely wins - it can act as a mild light pollution filter sometimes.

Super session with the 4” tonight, great views of the Veil and North America nebulas, challenging view of the Crescent, and an amazing view of the California nebula with my new Hb filter. Full report here.